Highbrow Art

Sixty years after her death, Mexican painter Frida Kahlo continues to capture the attention of modern audiences; she's commemorated in everything from yearly tributes to her iconic unibrow to films including the 2002 biopic starring Salma Hayek. But years before that movie told Kahlo's colorful story, Denver playwright Melissa Lucero McCarl penned and produced Painted Bread(the story of Frida Kahlo), a stage production that brings Kahlo to life.

The Aurora Fox will produce the play again this month, with actress Karen Slack reprising the role of Kahlo, which she first played a decade ago. The character of a tour guide leads the audience through the life of the expressive painter, from her early childhood to a traumatic accident as a teenager and through her fiery relationship with fellow artist Diego Rivera, all the while depicting some of Kahlo's most famous paintings through actors posing on stage. "Even though her painting was very non-realistic, the poses that the actors take behind a frame that floats in the center of the stage resemble the actual paintings," says director Warren Sherrill. "I hope that people can see Frida Kahlo as this human being who went through a lot of pain in life, but also learned to live life because of that. I think that's always interesting and timeless."

Painted Bread opens at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Aurora Fox Arts Center, 9900 East Colfax Avenue, and runs through February 23, with performances at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays. Tickets, $22 to $26, and more information are available at aurorafox.org or by calling 303-739-1970.
Fridays, Saturdays, 7:30 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. Starts: Jan. 31. Continues through Feb. 23, 2014